(SATURDAY NIGHT UPDATE: Proprietor Miranda reports via FB that she has signed the lease.)By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

She’s not sure yet whether it’s a total move or an expansion.

But Miranda Krone, proprietor of Meander’s Kitchen in north Morgan Junction, tells WSB she is signing the lease tomorrow for a space in White Center (the former Papa’s Pub, closed since February, at 9635 16th SW).

If the White Center location becomes an expansion rather than just a larger replacement, maybe the current spot could “go back to being a smaller, more personable (venue),” Miranda mused during our conversation. “We’ve grown so much that I don’t get to chit-chat with people as much when I cook – it would be great to shift our volume, but then still have the little counter.”

Whatever the eventual result, Miranda says, “I’m really excited about the move to the (White Center) location.” For one thing, it’s not far from the Arbor Heights neighborhood, where she lives (though Morgan Junction isn’t, either) – second, she likes the evolving White Center business district, saying that “being part of that community really suits us; we fit into the business community there.”

She already has been talking with Justin Cline, proprietor of Full Tilt Ice Cream a few doors away; Miranda says she’s hoping to put in a soda fountain when the new space opens. She is dreaming of offering egg creams (which, you may know, don’t really include eggs), among other soda-fountain classics – with of course, a unique Meander’s twist, possibly some herbs or flowers.

She plans to focus on non-alcoholic beverages, at least for the initial months, “just to make sure the focus is on the food and being a restaurant” – under previous ownership, the space had its troubles, including a clientele that eventually drew a federal raid. “But there’s not that kind of vibe any more,” she notes. “Businesses in the area are doing well … I don’t think White Center is any worse than Belltown; you just pay much higher rent in Belltown!”

More room for books, and even dinner theater!, are part of her plans too, along with more pastries – overall, the plan goes far beyond what you find at Meander’s now, in a space that is generally filled to the gills. The White Center location will have not only more space but also more equipment, so they can have more cooks on the line, which means getting your food faster, she says, also expressing excitement about the French doors out front.

So will the White Center space also be called Meander’s Kitchen? we ask.

“Well … Meander’s something,” says Miranda, who acknowledges she’s been pondering that point. “Should we have a different name? We should definitely still have Meander’s on there somewhere, so you know that’s where you can get the good hash browns.”

And the hearty laughter, which follows that declaration.

No timetable yet; Miranda says it’ll take a few months to sort things out.

Miranda: I am glad my suggestion in the forums for WC resonated :) I still think you could crowdsource improvements if you needed to. You have a very loyal following and you will do great in WC! We will certainly come and visit. Your only competition will be Young’s which is kind of basic in my opinion…nothing like all your special touches!!! Congrats

I’m certainly hoping the original venue remains open. I never shop or eat in White Center. The area is certainly improving, and the new restaurant will be a great asset to the district, but frankly, WC is still too dodgy an area for me. Good luck Miranda. Your place is the best.

Well that just stinks for those of us who can walk to your place now, and have supported you from the begining, will not be getting up to drive to rat city for breakfast, bummer we finally had a breakfast place and now gone!! UGH

My whole family is so excited! Meanders – within walking distance? White Center is awesome. And the people taking risks on opening new businesses there are even more awesome. Thanks for taking the risk Miranda – the people of WC won’t let you down :)

At Ray West – come and give the WC restaurants a try. You’re missing out on an incredible variety of good eats…Salvadorean, Vietnamese, pizza, homemade ice cream, barbecue, coffeehouse and pub food to name just a few. Meander’s will be a great, unique addition and will increase the diversity of options without the risk of directly competing with anyone who’s offering the same kind of fare.

ACK! I will now be able to walk to Zippys, Proletariat, Full Tilt, AND Meanders?! There is not enough walking for me to not gain weight. I may have to move further away or use my gym membership more! :P

I am beyond excited. Here’s my only concern-the folks next door! A LOT of peoria stand out and smoke. If you ever want to open those lovely French doors we are going to be smoked out by cigarettes instead of cooking fumes! And of it’s going to be as it is now, family friendly, it will not be wasn’t to work our children through the Amalie to get to you. I don’t know of anything can be done about that but I see it as a turn off- sorry, but I’m in the area regularly and I think it’s a problem! But White center YES-love it here xxx

If you never shop or eat in WC, what experience of yours is driving that decision? It would be a pity for Miranda to lose customers and for you to lose s great dining experience because of fear based on the way WC was. Do yourself a favor and go have breakfast there when she opens.

When Meanders opens for breakfast, the streets will be safe. The streets are safe now and filled with great folks like you doing commerce. I see potentially sketchy folks in the Junction area every time I go there. It is not a valid reason for me to not support those businesses.

There is angled parking and there sre always lots of empty slots in the AM. The furthest I have ever walked for parking is 1/2 block. Not much of an issue.

People, White Center is about many interesting things, but it is also about The Food by uniquely talented folks.

How do you know if some place is too dodgy if you never eat or shop there?! Wow! Best burgers, best ice cream, best pizza and best BBQ in Seattle is actually just across the city limits in White Center.

Actually, newnative, I maintain that the best BBQ is in Highland Park. Morningstar Deli on 9th and Henderson does it right. (The BBQ place on 16th is pretty good, I’ll grant you, but…Morningstar is better.)

Have had 2 meals at Meanders and both times food was sublime but the surly man at the grill was so rude to me (a paying customer) I vowed the second time never to go back. I get the whole let’s be really rude shtick they may think is cool but I was so taken aback and have talked to others who feel same way. Our friends own Proletariat in White Center and have such amazing customer service – may it rub off on the Meander staff.

As a resident of the White Center area for over 40 years, I’ve never understood the negative reputation. Yes, there is crime, but almost all of those incidents have taken place in the late-night and early morning hours when not many people are out and about. It’s not like West Seattle doesn’t have it’s share of criminal activity, mostly during the day time hours with burglaries and car thefts. Both West Seattle and White Center are filled with really great people and great businesses, I think the advantage to White Center is that it is not in the City of Seattle, so you can still get your groceries bagged in paper or plastic without having to pay for it. Welcome to the neighborhood Meanders!

I have to speak up in appreciation of White Center, since we’ve gotten to know its businesses, and many of its community leaders, a bit better after four years of running White Center Now along with WSB. Yeah, it has some X-rated shops. Unlike such places as downtown Seattle and SODO, they do NOT have giant two-story animated lit-up marquees with skimpily clad women. The folks who live, work, and do business in WC have high praise for one shop owner, Stan, as a devoted member of the community. You bet – it’s absolutely not Disneyland Main Street. But it also is not crime-ridden. We cover that beat in WC as well as WS and most of the time there’s more burglaries, street robberies, etc. on THIS side of the line. If you are among the few who still steer clear of WC because of some old reputation – when Meander’s opens give it a chance. Or heck, give it a chance right now. And not just the great places everyone mentions (Full Tilt, Proletariat Pizza on 16th, Zippy’s on 14th) but also Caffe Delia (open mornings in the Proletariat space), nearby Uncle Mike’s Superlicious Barbecue (which has spectacular vegetarian offerings despite being a “barbecue joint”), Company Bar (which is a restaurant too), the new San Fernando Roasted Chicken a little ways south on 16th, Salvadorean Bakery, the roller rink, I could go on. Many of the establishments linked to past trouble are gone – including the space Miranda’s taking over, and a dance club further north whose fans used to rumble in a nearby parking lot every weekend – so much of the changes are thanks to community members rolling up their sleeves and saying, we’re going to keep the pressure on … It’s also a time of potential transition for WC; Seattle showed no interest in annexing it, though it had dibs, so Burien is proposing to do so, with a vote coming up in November. Anyway, as is the case with some parts of WS, undeserved reputations linger, and you’re missing a lot if that is keeping you north of Roxbury, in this case. We wish Miranda all the luck in the world and as I told her during our chat last night, I hope the expanded space means Patrick and I will FINALLY get to try her creations – we’ve driven by a million times and seen the wait out front and just didn’t have the time to spare, no matter how fabulous the eventual food would have been … TR /soapbox

TR is correct. There is nothing explicitly pornographic in front of Stan’s shop. Right now there is a custom painted Seattle skyline in the window. Stan’s uber family-friendly neighboring businesses like Stan. Some parenting types just aren’t able to negotiate the paradoxes ever-present in urban life, I guess. Odd that, when you’ve chosen to live in a city.

Neighborly, I’ve yet to see a thing in Stan’s windows that I haven’t seen in a PG movie. They’re pretty good about that, really.
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As WSB pointed out, the displays downtown are FAR more risque and attention-getting. And frankly, I’ve run into far more trouble on the street—in ostensibly “safe” areas, yet!—in Seattle than I ever have in White Center.

I guess my point is that means downtown, Capitol Hill, and Lake City are dodgy too…well, I’ll grant that last one. ;)
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The most memorable Stan’s display I ever saw was the Christmas village; something about the juxtaposition with their racy posters just cracks me up.

Really hate to see Meander’s leave WS but fully understand the possible necessity. I can’t walk to WC but easily accessible by bus. I’m glad to see her doing so well with her new business that she’s looking on to bigger and better things.I’m sure that it wouldn’t be long and she’ll again have an overflowing business clientelle. I wish her the best in this venture.

I’m SO very happy you have been so successful! I’ve been going since the second day your were open (though I cant say Im’ a regular because I travel so much for work). I’m going to be REALLY sad if you give up the current location entirely. But I would LOVE to see it stay/go back to a little 8 seater. I enjoyed the chit-chatting….

Thrilled you are opening in WC, been hitting Proletariat hard since they opened and would love to see another place to go…WC now has better food choices then WS when you count in the food trucks, PHO, and desserts. Love it!!!

This is disappointing. My family loves Meanders and White Center is just not safe enough to go eat in the middle of the night. The last time I went to Papa’s to see a friends band it was extremely scary walking to the car after the show. I have traveled the world and I don’t shy away from all sorts of neighborhoods here in Seattle. But it’s not worth it. The thugs out number the decent folks at night and it’s just downright dangerous. Well, Meanders is not gonna be our late night b-fast place anymore.

To those who responded to my “dodgy” comment, just let me say that I once worked in the White Center district for about ten years, so I have had occasion to eat and shop in the area, and I still have to travel through it from time-to-time. I also follow the news, and there are still problems with drugs, gangs, prostitution, and other crimes. Claiming that it mostly happens at night is not comforting or realistic. The community has made great strides in attempting to overcome these problems, but there’s still a long road ahead. I applaud the civic leaders and business people like who are working so hard to revitalize this area.

For White Center news from the past four years, here’s our site: http://whitecenternow.com – you can use the category link archives in the sidebar to go right to the crime category (or any other category of coverage!).

really now your not going to come eat in wc ???? im not eating in west seattle ? come on now read your crime watch !ADMIRAL PIZZA ROBBED ? WOMAN STABBED ON ALKI? GUNFIRE ON ALKI TAIL PARK ? O AND A …>MULTIPLE -MURDER IN WEST SEATTLE ?? COME ON NOW ! I’LL BE EATING IN WC *_*

Proletariat’s sign says “The Pizza that made White Center famous!” I was in Full Tilt when I read the sign below their counter: “The ice cream that made Proletariat famous!” I split a gut so hard that even the guy working the counter started laughing. He told me “You’re obviously from here. Not everyone gets it…”
So in the interest of continuing the tradition, should Meander’s add a sign in her new WC location that says: “The restaurant that made Full Tilt famous!”???
Methinks so…

The only way a neighborhood can change is by people stepping up and voting with their $$$. Ballard, Belltown and Columbia City were urban deserts in the mid-90’s and look at them now! Creative artistic folks move in first because of lower rents, then urban hipsters visit and eventually the sidewalks are so full of “regular” folks you hardly recognize the old neighborhood. Even though I can walk to EATS for breakfast, I will buckle up the kiddos and head to Meander’s! Thanks to all the business owners that believe in the community!

Downtown WC is getting better. Definitely. But as Ray West says, it’s got a long road ahead of it. It’s in a transitional phase right now and could easily go either way. It could keep moving forward, but it could also easily go back to what it was ten years ago. It would’ve done that, in fact, if not for the big police raid last spring.
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Stan’s is not the problem. The problem lies half a block south of ex-Papa’s on the same side of the street, a spot where lowlifes still congregate to buy dope and do other kinds of unsavory business. Even though that cesspit of a “marijuana smoking lounge” was closed, there are still a couple of marijuana shops on that block. So far, they’re not causing any trouble, but they’re something to keep an eye on. There is also a tavern in that block that has been known to serve alcohol to inebriated people. And I’m not talking about myself . . .
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I will try out Miranda’s new digs in W.C. But when it comes to that area in general, I’m not ready to don the rose-colored glasses just yet.

lmao rose- colored glasses ?and you are from what part of town ?i no it cant b west seattle are wc now can it !becuse i never seen rose- colored glasses in west seattle are wc really come on now. and your not talking about your self ? okay then … im going 2 b eating in wc and west seattle all over town . you well spot lowlifes here to all over seattle .. good luck Miranda *_*

I’m so glad to see this business is coming to W.C. The neighborhood has changed so much in just 2 years that I’ve lived here. I always knew it had potential and it has exceeded my expectations.Welcome Meanders!